Port-Au-Prince, haiti Earthquake, January 2010 Flashcards
Where was the earthquakes epicentre?
The earthquakes epicentre was 24km south-west of the Haiti capital Port-Au-Prince which was home to 2 million people, it was shallow Focus and was the energy equivalent of an atomic bomb detonation, violently shaking the entire country but no where worse than Than capital
Primary Effects:
Much of Port-Au-Prince flattened in 60 seconds
Over 230,000 lives were lost
Infamous poorly built concrete shacks were almost all flattened across the nation including key government buildings
1.5 million people made homeless
Nearly 5000 schools destroyed
Infrastructure severely damaged including the countries main port affecting aid and the economy
Liquefaction on looser ground resulted in even more building collapse a considerable time after the earthquake
When was the date of the Haiti earthquake?
12th of January 2010
Secondary effects:
Strong aftershocks were recorded causing even more damage
With the loss of 100s of civil servants, the destruction of government buildings and lack of money to rebuild the government fell, this meant that police had no power and the city became lawless and crime skyrocketed.
One year after the earthquake cholera had killed 1500 people and 1.5 million were still homeless
Short-term (immediate) responses:
Rescue efforts struggled to save people due to the condensed and dense structure of Port-Au-Prince
The Us took control of the main airport to speed aid deliveries up
Eventually 16,000 UN troops restored order
The Un provided basic food necessities due to a risk of starvation due to the collapse of many markets and farming.
The Uk disaster and emergency committee provided bottled water and purification tablets to 250,000 people
Around 1.5 million homeless people accommodated in temporary camps that aren’t so temporary as many still stand today being at risk of storms that hit the nation frequently
Why was the event so bad for Haiti?
Because the nation is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, 54% of the population live in abject poverty, it is also seismically active, lies in a hurricane belt, suffers flooding, political instability and corruption showing how all these factors were made worse by the earthquake.
Long term responses:
Aid- The Haiti relief fund was set up to control an 11.5 billion dollar reconstruction package that has helped to ensure that rebuilding is expected to be completed by 2020
The farming sector was reformed to ensure the nation could remain self-sustaining rather than relying on aid.
Rebuilding was taken seriously as new hospitals schools etc. Were rebuilt alongside new affordable and Are homes that are built to a new safety code
A Un strategy was set up to reduce the economic impact of the event including rebuilding tourism and manufacturing
